Chilmark Gets New Fire Tanker Truck

Chilmark has a new fire truck which arrived on Jan. 10, upgrading the 1986 tanker currently in use. Getting the truck was a two year process, said Capt. Keith L. Emin, who managed the design, construction and delivery of the vehicle and will oversee its operation.

Mr. Emin said the truck was custom made by Bulldog Fire & Emergency Apparatus of Woodville to meet Chilmark’s specific needs of a high power engine and pump. The cost was $200,000.

New truck can pump 1,500 gallons a minute.
— Mark Lovewell

The vehicle carries 3,000 gallons of water. The old one carried 2,650 gallons. The new truck can pump 1,500 gallons a minute, considerably more than the previous truck which pumped 500 gallons a minute.

Truck 133 also has an onboard computer which assists whenever the firemen need to pump from a water source, such as a freshwater pond. Older trucks require a specific pump priming procedure which for the operator requires a lot of training, but Lieutenant Scott McDowell said this pump knows just what to do.

The new truck resides at the North Road firehouse. The firemen have named it Poogie, the same nickname as the older truck, in honor of Capt. David (Poogie) Kurth, a fireman who died in 2001 of tularemia, who was much beloved in the fire department, Mr. Emin said.